Hummingbirds are some of the most fascinating birds to observe due to their speed, agility, and beautiful plumage. As they zip from flower to flower sipping nectar, it can be challenging to get more than a fleeting glimpse of them. This makes tracking and recording their activity patterns difficult without help. Fortunately, recent advances in technology and smartphone applications may provide solutions for both amateur bird enthusiasts and scientists studying hummingbird behavior.
Why track hummingbirds?
There are several reasons why someone may want to track hummingbirds. For many people, hummingbirds are cherished backyard visitors, and they enjoy observing and learning more about their daily habits. Tracking hummingbirds can help identify their favorite flowers, feeding times, and migration patterns. This allows people to provide the best habitat to attract more hummingbirds. For researchers, gathering data on hummingbird movements, interactions, and preferences through tracking can reveal valuable information about their ecological roles as pollinators and their responses to environmental changes. Developing new technology to study hummingbirds also allows us to learn more about their physiology and biomechanics which could inspire innovative applications in engineering and robotics.
Challenges of tracking hummingbirds
Attempting to track hummingbirds poses some unique challenges. First, they are extremely small, usually weighing 2-20 grams and measuring 6-13 cm long. Their tiny size makes them difficult to tag or attach tracking devices to without impacting their ability to fly and feed freely. Hummingbirds can beat their wings up to 80 times per second and reach speeds over 30 mph, making them difficult to record or observe for long periods of time as they zip around. They have accelerated heart rates and metabolisms, requiring them to visit hundreds of flowers each day, covering large distances. Their feeding habits, speed, and small territory ranges do not lend themselves well to many traditional wildlife tracking techniques. Developing a system to precisely track hummingbird movements requires overcoming these challenges.
Tracking technology options
Here are some options that may enable better tracking and study of hummingbirds:
GPS tags
Miniaturized GPS tracking tags could be attached to hummingbirds to record exact locations over time. This technology has been used for larger birds and would need to be scaled down. The tags need to be very light, less than 5% of the bird’s weight, so as not to encumber their flight. The devices also must be streamlined and secured so they do not snag on branches or vegetation. The tracking data would need to be transmitted efficiently to researchers. GPS tags have helped gather valuable migratory data on larger species, but the technology needs to advance further for hummingbird tracking.
Banding
Hummingbirds can be tagged with numbered aluminum bands around their legs to identify individual birds. This has been one of the most common techniques used to study hummingbird movement and behavior over decades. However, banding provides limited data points, usually only showing when and where a banded hummingbird was originally tagged and where it was observed later. But it does not track all the locations a hummingbird travels between observations. Leg bands with embedded RFID chips could allow more precise monitoring of hummingbirds through networks of receivers. But again the technology needs to miniaturized before it can be widely used on hummingbirds.
Video recording
Recording video footage using high-speed cameras focused on hummingbird feeders, nests, or natural food sources can capture valuable information about their habits and interactions. However, the cameras’ limited fields of view constrain the usefulness of this approach. Large-scale video monitoring systems would likely be required to track longer-range movements. But reviewing and analyzing large volumes of hummingbird video footage also poses a challenge. Advanced analytics using machine learning algorithms may help process these video data more efficiently.
Sonic tracking
Recording hummingbirds’ distinct vocalizations and wingbeat sounds using microphone arrays could allow tracking their movements by triangulating the sounds. But filtering their ultrasoft high-pitched vocalizations from background noise and separating individual birds poses difficulties. This approach may be more viable with further processing power improvements and audio analysis sophistication.
Thermal imaging
Tracking birds by their heat signatures has shown promise for monitoring movements of species active at night or in dense cover. Hummingbirds give off distinct thermal signatures compared to their environments which could potentially be tracked and analyzed using thermal cameras. However, this technique remains costly and challenging for small, fast-moving targets like hummingbirds.
Motion sensors
Networks of infrared and optical motion sensors around known hummingbird habitat could detect their movement patterns. Large volumes of sensor data would need to be processed rapidly to differentiate hummingbird motions from other wildlife or background motion noise. While motion sensors could indicate hummingbird presence and activity levels, they may lack the precision for detailed behavioral analyses.
Smartphone app solutions
In recent years, some developers have focused on leveraging smartphone technologies to create apps aimed specifically at recording and tracking hummingbird activity and locations. Here are some of the more promising apps that have emerged:
Hummingbird ID
This app created by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center enables users to identify hummingbird species by uploading photos to the app. It provides species accounts, information on characteristics, and tips on attracting more hummingbirds. Users can also report hummingbird sightings through the app to contribute to a nationwide database tracking migration patterns and behavior.
Hummingbird Monitor
Cornell Lab of Ornithology developed this app that allows observers to log hummingbird visits to backyard feeders and flowering plants. The data documents arrival and departure dates, frequency, and feeding preferences. The content is uploaded to the eBird database to help scientists study trends in hummingbird populations and behavior.
Hummbirdz
This app utilizes facial recognition algorithms to identify individual hummingbirds visiting a feeder if users photograph them. The app developers partnered with researchers at the University of Saskatchewan to test and refine the recognition technology using machine learning. It can document daily patterns and repeat visits while identifying individual hummingbirds.
Happy Beaks
Created by a hobbyist birdwatcher, this app lets users log hummingbird sightings by date, time, location, and species. Users can also upload photos and record key behaviors. The app compiles users’ data to provide insights into migration timing and activity patterns for common hummingbird species.
TrackHum
Still in beta testing, this app aims to use smartphone cameras and object recognition technology to identify and track individual hummingbirds’ movements on a larger scale. Developers hope to eventually integrate computer vision and AI to enable real-time tracking and behavioral analyses through networked smartphone cameras.
| App Name | Key Features | Developer |
|---|---|---|
| Hummingbird ID | Photo identification, species information, user reporting | Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center |
| Hummingbird Monitor | Feeder/flower monitoring, data to eBird | Cornell Lab of Ornithology |
| Hummbirdz | Facial recognition, identifies individuals | University of Saskatchewan |
| Happy Beaks | Sighting logs, photos, behavior notes | Individual developer |
| TrackHum | Computer vision tracking, AI analysis | Private startup |
Conclusion
Tracking hummingbird movements and behaviors poses exciting challenges for researchers. Innovations in technology along with citizen science collaboration could provide solutions. Smartphone apps are emerging that enable crowdsourced data collection and analysis of hummingbird activity through community participation. As camera, GPS, and computing capabilities improve and become more miniaturized, biologists are also gaining more tools to apply directly with hummingbirds. Combining these approaches through integrated networks and AI applications could create powerful new systems for gathering insights into hummingbird ecology and biology. The prospect of tracking hummingbirds through their lighting-fast and intricate movements is daunting but attainable through persisting technology advances.
